These are strictly from the famous “Eddie” tape source, which don’t offer a complete Ten Years Gone or guitar solo.

“Sequence of Events” was released in June 2010. It’s the most complete tape available. It offers more music during the two cut songs and more tape between songs. Other than a few barely noticeable instances during the guitar solo, the sound doesn’t have any of the problems found on other titles. The speed is proper.

TDOLZ’s Ten Years Gone misses six seconds too much. For some reason, the sound quality drops down noticeably after Kashmir but recovers later before the next disc. Jelly Roll’s Remaster version was their first release of this show. It’s Ten Years Gone is cut too big like SIRA and the old Taranturas, missing about 80 seconds too much. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds.

Speed is the real difference between the two SIRA’s. The original issue runs faster. The cuts differ slightly. SIRA’s sound is perfect all the way through but it’s Ten Years Gone is 80 seconds too short. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds. The music and background noise are a little louder than some of the other titles. It is most likely due to equalization.

Tarantura’s Out On the Tiles are both exactly the same discs. Ten Years Gone is missing 80 seconds too much. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds. Fifteen seconds of audience cheer have been pasted between the guitar solo and Achilles Last Stand. The tape after the show was mostly copied from earlier in the show. The sound is very nice, like SIRA. Again, it may be completely due to equalizing and boosting the tape.

Absence has the more tape between songs than the older single source titles. It’s Ten Years Gone is cut, missing six seconds too much. For the first time on cd, Black Country Woman is missing the beginning 6 seconds. Another 8 seconds of music is missing too – this time in the Jimmy’s guitar solo. The sound on this title has been way, way over-worked. Simply said, it is just too loud. The background noise is far too much to bear.

Two consecutive “Eddie” tape releases to cd were made by Tarantura2000. Their first version “Absence” was billed to be the newest, latest and greatest, best sounding most complete…It was proved to be wrong, and was actually the least musically complete version of Eddie since the two SIRA’s and the original Tarantura issue (later reissued).

Now, with Tarantura2000’s latest “Listen To This, Eddie” (Yuzuki series), they specifically state in the liner notes: “Tarantura and Cool MixMan present to you the Original Master Recording in its most complete and unedited state. The recording has been faithfully mastered to display…” (Before getting to those statements, the author of the liner notes considered the SIRA Master Series to be best, “until now.” What about their “Absence?”)

To no surprise, this “Yuzuki” version is not from the master. It is not the most complete version (from the famous “Eddie” tape). It is not unedited. It has not been faithfully mastered. IT IS IN FACT, THE MOST HIGHLY CUT/EDITED VERSION EVER.

There are multiple cut and repeats of tape before and after the show, and more between songs. This effort of “faking tape” is for you to believe that there’s “more tape,” so it must be more complete. The title is missing Robert’s “I’ve started to cook” sentence, which can be found on their previous release. Six seconds of tape are missing from Ten Years Gone and more is missing after the song. Black Country Woman is complete this time after failing on Absence. The guitar solo wasn’t corrected this time from Absence’s failure, so again, 8 seconds of music is missing. There’s a cut in the beginning of Achilles Last Stand, when Jimmy starts in. This marks an enormous change in sound, and is very loud and unnatural.

Considering Tarantura2000’s history of over-tweaking (sabotaging) the sound, they were light handed this time. You must pay close attention to hear the hints of their equalizing. The music is louder than other titles and the background has been suppressed/tweaked. No improvement in sound.

It would be completely unprofessional for bootledz not to inform readers that Tarantura2000 is almost always JUNK. Yuzuki Eddie is completely fraudulent (intent to deceive and other elements) in their claims and of course isn’t the only one. Please, please do not rush to buy the latest Tara2000 title until you get a review from a trusted source. Don’t rely on reviews and comments issued before the title is released – those are usually biased and misinformed to generate sales.

6-21-77, sources 1 & 2

Listen To This Eddie (Akashic, Empress Valley’s three different individual issues and FBO Box set issue, Jelly Roll Definitive Complete Version, Scorpio, & Wendy Record’s four different issues)
These mixes rely on the famous Eddie tape and fill Ten Years Gone’s gap with an alternate tape. The cut in the guitar solo is not filled.

Jelly Roll’s Definitive Complete Version is different from their first release. JR is further missing the “I’ve started to cook” sentence and uses all but six seconds of the famous Eddie tape for Ten Years Gone. It and Empress Valley’s first Eddie (jewel cased) make edits at some cuts, adding in extra audience noise and sometimes repeating sections. JR and EV’s guitar solos are missing approximately 5 seconds.
Wendy first issue (jewel cased) contains all previously known tape between songs. It does use one cut/repeat (after Since). It misses too much of Ten Years Gone and it’s guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds.

Wendy’s second issue (sleeved) reuses the cds from the first edition.

Wendy’s third issue (jewel cased) of this title is different from the prior issues. It’s still missing too much of Ten Years Gone from the famous tape. They’ve spliced in extra tape after Since, Kashmir, and after the show that does not belong. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds.

Wendy’s forth issue (gatefold housed in clear sleeve) is a reissue of the previous edition.

Akashic’s Eddie is missing six seconds too much of Ten Years Gone. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds. All commentary between songs is present.
Scorpio’s title is missing some of the original tape after Since, having other tape inserted. Eight seconds of the Eddie tape are displaced by source two during Ten Years Gone. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds.

Empress Valley’s second and third issues of Eddie (both labeled “New Improved”) are almost the longest versions of the famous tape. Instead of missing six seconds of Ten Years Gone, they only miss three. (They did use a six second cut/repeat after Stairway.) The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds. There’s an large increase in volume when the drums start in the beginning of ALS
Empress Valley’s fourth issue is found in the “For Badge Holders Only” box set, with the usual title. Although there are four very minor improvements during the last hour of the show, the splice in Ten Years Gone is happens too early, missing almost six seconds of the famous tape. The guitar solo is missing approximately 5 seconds. There is no big sound change/increase during the beginning of ALS. It’s sound is otherwise identical to the second and third issues by this label.

Akashic’s title has been amplified louder than any of these other mixed source titles. Empress Valley’s three releases are not quite as loud as Akashic. Wendy’s title is the least loud of the five. The differences in sound are most likely due to different eq’s and nothing else.

Overall, EV’s second Eddie does a better job with the Eddie tape and mixing in the other tape.
(EV’s second Eddie was issued in a sleeve with an obi. A promotional “Christmas” version was released simultaneously, using the same discs. The difference with the promo version is the exclusion of the obi and a different front picture, adorned with holly and Christmas lights. EV’s third version is sleeved, without an obi, and uses a different front picture. The discs are different. They have different matrix numbers, disc times, and some different cue stops. However, it is the same exact audio used in the prior release.)

First of six sold out nights at the Forum, and a great show. The Song Remains The Same, Sick Again, Kashmir and Achilles Last Stand are devastating and No Quarter is just the greatest version ever heard! John Bonham was introduced by Plant as “…the man who fought food poisoning and drunk Heineken…”.

A great show and not merely an opening night, but a great show in its own right. It also comes from the best audience recording ever! In fact the Millard tape sound so great Jimmy used the fragment on the official DVD!

The first show of the band’s six night stand at The Forum begins with a brief soundcheck as the crowd’s excitement builds to a frenzied peak. Following a shaky performance two nights earlier, Bonzo is back with a vengeance, thrashing at his drums in a frantic explosion of energy as The Song Remains the Same crashes into motion. The intense sonic assault doesn’t let up as the band launches into a ferocious Sick Again.

Page’s guitar cuts out briefly during the intro, causing a moment of confused hesitation at the beginning of the first verse. He shreds wildly through the guitar solos as Bonzo continues to pummel the crowd with his thunderous attack. A brutal performance, one of the best thus far. Nobody’s Fault But Mine is devastatingly heavy. Plant exclaims “oh Jimmy, excuse me!” as Page begins a blistering guitar solo. As the song ends, Plant tells the crowd “it is indeed a great pleasure to be back in California… it’s very hard to see the sun in a basement in New York.”

Page blazes through an excellent guitar solo during Over the Hills and Far Away. Since I’ve Been Loving You is an intense emotional drama. Plant is in top form, belting out each line with power and conviction. As the song ends, he announces “we’d like to welcome back to the world John Bonham, who had a terrible fit of food poisoning,” joking “he ate far too many rhinestones.” No Quarter is an epic journey.

A series of haunting theramin howls introduce Jones’s ominous piano solo, which includes hints of Your Time is Gonna Come. Page and Bonzo join in for an outstanding blues improvisation. The band is absolutely on fire during the fantastic guitar solo section, slowly building tension until everything erupts in an explosive climax, crashing down on the crowd in thunderous waves. Page shreds wildly during the song’s violent outro. An utterly devastating performance, one of the best ever.

Page blazes through the guitar solos during an excellent Ten Years Gone. Someone near the taper can be heard shouting “bring on Neil Young!” as the band prepares for the acoustic set. Going to California is beautiful. Plant hints at Gallows Pole before Black Country Woman. Page’s fingers dance across the fretboard during White Summer/Black Mountain Side. Kashmir is incredibly powerful. Jones’s droning keyboard symphony washes over the crowd as the band defiantly marches into battle. A crushing performance.

There is a long pause before Over the Top, during which Plant pokes fun at Bonzo as he tries to fix a problem with his drum kit. The crowd goes wild as Page begins Heartbreaker. His fingers tear across the fretboard in a furious cascade of notes during the blistering guitar solo.

Shouts of “hey asshole, play some music!” and “we’ve had the guitar lessons!” can be heard coming from the crowd during a particularly lengthy experimental guitar solo. The band hammers through a violently aggressive Achilles Last Stand at a frantic pace. Plant tells the crowd “it’s sort of a high point of the whole tour to be back here” before Stairway to Heaven. Bonzo thrashes wildly at anything within reach as Page shreds through an explosive guitar solo. Plant pushes his voice to the limit during the final verse. Whole Lotta Love is preceded by a heavy a cappella intro from Page with hints of Communication Breakdown thrown in.

The band closes the show with a riotous Rock and Roll. As the song ends, Plant announces “it’s like a good woman, goodnight!” An unbelievable performance, one of the best ever. Must hear.

The concert was recorded by a member of the audience, Mike Millard, and was later released illegally on vinyl without the permission of the band or the taper. The original vinyl issue of the show was released on Rock Solid Records, and featured the first 60 minutes of the concert, from “The Song Remains the Same” through to “Ten Years Gone”.

The cover art for the album featured the same group image of the band member’s faces from the back cover of Led Zeppelin III, along with the mysterious obelisk from the cover of Presence. In the 1990s the complete recording of the show became available on CD through various releases, with most of them using the same “Eddie” title. Millard’s recording remains one of the best-known Led Zeppelin bootlegs.

Listen To This Eddie is highly regarded amongst collectors not only because of the highly energetic performance by the band but also because it was captured in exceptionally good audio quality.[2] This can largely be attributed to the dedication and experience of Millard, who by 1977 had already made several bootleg recordings of other concerts performed at the Los Angeles Forum. It is believed that he recorded this particular show from row six.

The complete Millard recording lasts 190 minutes and includes the entire concert (including encores). It was the first show of six at the Los Angeles Forum by Led Zeppelin, which came towards the end of its 1977 North American concert tour. Millard’s recording of the opening number from this concert, “The Song Remains the Same”, was included in the promos menu of the Led Zeppelin DVD.

This is regarded as one of the best concerts that the band ever played, with Jimmy Page performing lengthy solos and John Bonham playing heavily throughout, hitting triple fillings on many of the songs. Robert Plant is very talkative during the show and he is in a good voice throughout the performance. The band is also open for lengthy improvisations, as evidenced on “No Quarter”, on which John Paul Jones guides the band to multiple instrumental jams.

The title “Listen To This Eddie” is allegedly a reference to Eddie Van Halen of the band Van Halen, who in interviews criticised the playing ability of Led Zeppelin guitarist, Jimmy Page.[3] In particular, in an interview that Van Halen had given in January 1981 to Guitar World magazine, he was quoted as saying “Jimmy Page is an excellent producer. Led Zeppelin 1 and Led Zeppelin 2 are classics. As a player, he’s very good in the studio. I never saw him play well live. He’s very sloppy. He plays like he’s got a broken hand and he’s two years old. But if you put out a good album and play like a two-year-old live. What’s the purpose?”[4]

However, according to a Shockwaves Magazine article by Pat O’Connor entitled “The Ten Greatest Bootlegs”,[5] “Eddie” in the bootleg title refers to audio engineer Eddie Kramer, and not to Eddie Van Halen, implying that even Kramer would be impressed by such a quality bootleg recording. However, the article in which this point appears provides no reference to back up the claim.

Obviously, as bootleggers frequently used cryptic titles on their releases, the reality is that only the individuals behind Rock Solid Records know the true meaning of the title. However, given that the label was formed in 1985[6], and that this time period coincided with Van Halen’s prominence in popular music, perhaps it would make more sense that the title indeed refers to Van Halen and not to Kramer.